Ironing table with variable contour



Nov. 21, 1961 R. R. OLSWANG IRONING TABLE WITH VARIABLE CONTOUR FiledJuly 17, 1959 FIG.

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s R O T N E V m RALPH R. OLSWANG HIS ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,009,272 IRONING TABLE WITH VARIABLE CONTOUR RalphR. Olswang, Scarsdale, N.Y., assignor to Kamkap, Inc, New York, N.Y., acorporation of New York Filed July 17, 1959, Ser. No. 827,807 2 Claims.(Cl. 38-138) This invention relates to ironing table tops for handironing and provided with a working area having two different contoursand with means for instantly changing from one contour to the other.

An ironing board for ironing lar-ge flat articles like sheets and bedspreads should preferably be of rectangular shape with parallellongitudinal edges so that the flat articles being ironed can beprogressively moved as they are ironed. The rectangular ironing tabletop is more suitable for all flat articles regardless of size. Many ofthe articles iron-ed in the home are of tubular shape or of an irregularshape with cavities and for this purpose a table top having one taperedend is favored in order that the tubular articles, large or small, mayhe slipped thereover for the ironing operation. The tapered board,however, is not useful for the larger flat articles because itseffective ironing area is limited to the width of the narrow end and thepresence of the non-parallel sides tends to produce non-parallel ridgesor creases in the Work piece being ironed.

These two conflicting requirements are best solved by employing twoironing tables, one for each type of work. This, however, is notfeasible in apartments and in the smaller homes because of spacelimitations. The best Solution for this problem in the past has been toprovide a plurality of hinged sections to convert the tapered board intoa plain rectangle. This requires elongated hinges with special locks, orlinks, levers, and rotary control member and assorted gadgetry. All ofthese arrangements produce trouble in adjusting the combined cover andpad from the small to the larger area, unless separate covers are usedfor each section and this pro duces creases. Also, the extended part isnot nearly as rigid as the principal working area of the tapered board.

An important object of the present invention is to provide a singlesliding panel of novel design which will instantly convert the taperedarea to a plain rectangular one and this is accomplished without hingedparts or linkages.

Another object of this invention is to provide an extensible section togive the table top with one tapered end a generally rectangular outlinewith full parallel sides and wherein the added part is as stable andresistant to the ironing pressures as is the main body of the table top.

A further object of the invention is the combination of a taperedironing table top and a sliding rectangular panel and wherein theextensible panel is confined wholly within the area of the table topwhen said panel is in retracted position.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an ironing table top embodying the presentinvention and showing the sliding panel in extended position.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation thereof and showing portions of the crossedlegs broken way.

FIG. 3 is a bottom plan view.

FIG. 4 is a transverse section taken on line 44 of FIG. 3.

The ironing table top may be formed from expanded metal or from sheetmetal, the latter form being illustrated. It has a rectangular sectiondefined by opposed parallel edges 11 and a tapered section 12 defined byinwardly converging edges 14 which end in a rounded Patented Nov. 21,1961 section 15. The table top further has a downwardly extending flange17 which preferably has the structural shape shown in FIG. 4 to giveadded reinforcement to the board. The flange also has a lower horizontalextension 18. Crossed legs are shown in broken elevation at 20 and 21and which are pivotally mounted on shafts 22 carried by transversestruts 24 and 25. In most instances adjustment of the height of theboard is effected by having one leg fixed and the other longitudinallymovable. The particular leg structure, however, forms no part of thepresent invention.

The sliding panel which is the principal subject of the presentinvention is shown at 26 and has two opposed parallel edges 27 which arespaced apart a distance slightly less than the distance between theinner faces of opposed parallel flanges 17. It may further have shorttapered sections 28 at the outer end and an outer transverse edge 30. Aflange 31 may extend downwardly around its outer perimeter and which hasa narrow horizontal flange 33 at its lower end.

The panel is mounted for sliding movement on the table top by means ofcutting from flange 17, on each side of the table top, a generallyrectangular slot defined at opposite ends by edges 32 at a point wherelongitudinal edge 11 joins diagonal edge 14, and an edge 33 which islocated a few inches from rounded terminal 15 of the table top. The slotextends in a vertical direction from an upper edge 34 at the lower faceof top wall 12, to an edge 35 above the lower edge of flange =17. Enoughmetal is left below the slot as shown at 36 to form a suitable lowersupport for the panel.

The channels formed along the opposed longitudinal edges of the tabletop by flanges 1718 effectively support the rear section of the panel asit moves from retracted to extended position and the panel is furtherguided during this travel by means of mating longitudinal recesses 37and 38 formed in the table top and panel, respectively. When the panelis in its retracted position the narrow horizontal flange 33 may [reston a portion of lower wall 36 of the slot.

While there have been described herein what are at present consideredpreferred embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious to thoseskilled in the art that many modifications and changes may be madetherein without departing from the essence of the in vention. It istherefore to be understood that the exemplary embodiments areillustrative and not restrictive of the invention, the scope of which isdefined in the appended claims, and that all modifications that comewithin the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intendedto be included therein.

What I claim is:

1. An elongated ironing table top of generally rectangular shape, formedof sheet metal, and provided at one end thereof with a tapered sectionof not more than half the length of the rectangular section, and meansfor converting the tapered section into an area of rectangular shapehaving substantial-1y the same width as the rectangular section andforming an extension thereof on substantial-1y the same plane, saidtable top being provided with substantially L-shaped reinforcing flangesaround the opposed longitudinal edges of both sections, the flanges inthe tapered section having elongated openings therein, and a sheet metalpanel slidably mounted on the lower face of the rectangular section andof a width substantially the same as said section and of a lengthsuflicient to underlie a major portion of the length of the taperedsection, said panel having flanges which are enclosed by the flanges onthe rectangular section when the panel is retracted, the latter flangesforming trackway to guide the panel in its sliding movement, and toretain the sliding panel in firm 3 surface contact with the under faceof the table top, the panel passing through said elongated opening whenit is moved to extended position, the outer ends of said slots beingspaced from the outer end of the tapered section and forming stops forlimiting outward travel of the sliding panel.

2. An elongated ironing table top of generally rectangular shape formedof sheet metal and provided at one end thereof with a tapered section ofnot more than half the length of the rectangular section, and means forconverting the tapered section into an area of rectangular shape havingsubstantially the same width as the rectangular section and forming anextension thereof on substantially the same plane, said table top beingprovided with flanges around the opposed longitudinal 15 tangularsection and of a width substantially the same as said section and of alength suificient to underlie a major portion of the length of thetapered section, said panel having flanges which are enclosed by theflanges on the rectangular section when the panel is retracted, thelatter flanges forming trackways to guide the panel in its slidingmovement, the panel passing through said elongated opening when it ismoved to extended position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS262,502 Tannenberg et al. Aug. 8, 1882 775,070 Spurlin Nov. 15, 19042,718,077 Grissette Sept. 20, 1955 2,939,232 Munson June 7, 19602,939,233 Munson June 7, 1960 a, i A 5

